Aaeon l



(No Model.)

A. L. WHEELOGK.

NAIL HOLDER.

Patented Mar. 16, 1886.

Inventor aaan/ W Witnesses.

UNITE STATES PATENT OFFICE.

AARON L. WHEELOOK, or BUFFALQITEW YORK.

NAIL-HOLDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 337,905, dated March 16,1886.

Application filed February 3, 1886. Serial No. 190,682.

To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, AARON L. lVHEELocK, a citizen of the United States, residing in Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Nail-Holders, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to produce a simple and convenient means for holding a nail while driving it partly in place, whereby it may be started in perfectly straight or at any angle desired and Without danger ofjamming the fingers, all of which will be fully and clearly hereinafter shown, described, and claimed, by reference to accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of the device. Fig. 2 is a plan or top view, the slotted plate being left off, and Fig. 3 represents afront or end view of the nail-holder complete.

The driver consists, preferably, of two strips of hard wood, 1 and 2, secured together atthe ends 3 by a hinge, 4., of leather or other suitable material-such as steel or spring-brass having sufficient elasticity to cause the opposite ends, 5, to spring apart.

6 represents a piece of cord or wire having v knots 7, or a head or pin to limit the distance the ends 5 shall spring apart.

At or near the ends 5 on the inside are two pieces of leather, 8 and 9, securely tacked thereto, so that the heads of the tacks (or nails) are driven below the surface of the leather, and thereby hold it securely.

The front portions, 10, of the parts 1 and 2 are made a littlelower than the back portions,

(No model.)

as shown, and a flat piece or plate of heavy leather, 11, is securely nailed to one of the parts 1 or 2. In the drawings it is shown as nailed to the part 2, the other part, 1, being allowed to move easily under the part 11.

In the leather plate 11 is a small slot or opening, 12, through which the nail to be driven is placed, and as the leather portions 8 and 9 are worn away by the continued action of driving nails, the slot 12 in the plate 11 can be cut back until entirely worn out and new ones put on.

Ihe operation is as follows: A nail being placed in, as shown in Fig. 1, the device is grasped in the hand and held to the point where the nail is to be driven. It is then driven until the head nearly touches the leather plate 11, when the device is removed and the driving of the nail completed. By this means the nails may be easily and quickly driven with precision without the least danger of hurting the fingers; hence inexperienced persons in driving nails may useit with safety.

I claim as my invention A device for holding nails to be driven, consisting of the two bars or parts 1 and 2, secured together by a spring-hinge, 4, and provided with the limiting cord or wire 7, leathcr wearing-plates 8 and 9, and a slotted plate, 11, secured to one of the bars, as and for the purposes described.

A. L. WHEELOOK.

\Vitnesses:

J ENNIE M. CALDWELL, JAMES SANGSTER. 

